Lessons in skill and research

With the third edition of Industry Day slated to be held next month at IIT, Delhi, Prof. Anurag S. Rathore, Department of Chemical Engineering, talks to Mail Today about developing skills in the current world

advertisement

Smitha Verma

August 20, 2019

UPDATED: August 20, 2019 13:13 IST

Students at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.

With the third edition of Industry Day slated to be held next month at the Indian Institute of Technology(IIT), Delhi, Prof. Anurag S. Rathore, Department of Chemical Engineering, talks to Mail Today about developing skills in the current world

What are your thoughts on the industry-academia gap that exists currently in the education system?

In the last two decades, India has witnessed significant growth in economic and industrial development and this requires a highly diversified and skilled human resource. The onus of making diverse and skilled human resource available lies on the system of higher education and hence partnership between private and government player becomes imperative.

The role of Academia includes skill building, innovation, incubation of start-ups, generation of intellectual property whereas the strength of Industry lies in understanding the business and commercialisation of the products. Institutes are increasingly collaborating with industry partners to co-create meaningful technologies and products.

What needs to be done to fill the industry-academia gap?

What is required is a complete change in the way traditional academia has operated in the past. IITs were created as premier institutes of education and the first few decades kept that focus as IITs churned out the leaders of the future. The last decade has however seen a shift in this focus as it was realised that we need to be recognised as a research institution and as a creator of cutting edge technologies and products. This line of thought is what led IIT Delhi to create the function of Corporate Relations in 2016. We have been working hard to convince our faculty about the need to collaborate with industry and the industry to understand our capabilities and invest in such collaborations.

Some new research projects undertaken by IIT-Delhi?

IIT Delhi lays strong emphasis on industry collaboration. In last five years, 890 sponsored research project worth Rs 785.59 cr have been undertaken in a wide variety of areas. IIT Delhi houses 12 centre of excellences that represent a model of strategic partnership between IITD and corporate partners.

What steps have you taken to meet the Sustainable Development Goals?

Sustainable development is a societal challenge. We have three dedicated centres towardssustainability:

DST Centre of Excellence in Climate Modelling

Sumant Sinha Centre of Excellence in Renewable Energy

Centre of Excellence for Research on Clean Air

Moreover, two newly formed CoE dedicated to the cause of sustainability include Centre for Automotive Research and Tribology (CART) for the promotion of interdisciplinary research in electric vehicle and Waste to Wealth Technologies’ wherein the longterm goal is to create circular economic models for waste management, by leveraging big data analytics and frontier technologies to streamline waste in India.

What are the new innovations that have come up in IIT-Delhi that brings to focus researchdriven academia?

With 890 sponsored research projects undertaken in last five years, the list of innovations is quite long. These will be showcased in our upcoming Industry Day event on September 21 at our campus. A few of the recent innovations include:

IIT Delhi has developed a technology that uses 3D printing to produce high-quality yet affordable tactile diagrams on a large scale for books and other printables in Braille. The impact is huge in empowering visually impaired.

A way to fight air pollution by replacing wood with cow dung logs during funerals. Seeks to reduce deforestation.

What is the focus of this year's Industry Day?

Industry Day 2019 aims to harness and promote the power of Industry-Academia collaboration, kindle ideas for cogent partnerships and showcase cutting edge technology research conducted by the IIT Delhi research community. Our objective is to demonstrate technical research capabilities, forge new collaborative relationships and further strengthen our existing partnerships.

The thematic sessions at Industry Day 2019 will include:

Sustainable Medical Technologies

Clean Energy for Sustainable Economy and Environment

Sustainable Environment

Emerging Nano and Advanced Materials

Make In India

The event would showcase technologies and products that are ready for commercialisation along with poster sessions. We are also organising an exclusive session on Women in Science’ and a student interactive session.

Get real-time alerts and all the news on your phone with the all-new India Today app. Download from